Exodus 21
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Christian Standard BibleNew Living Translation
1"These are the ordinances that you are to set before them:1“These are the regulations you must present to Israel.
2"When you buy a Hebrew slave, he is to serve for six years; then in the seventh he is to leave as a free man without paying anything.2“If you buy a Hebrew slave, he may serve for no more than six years. Set him free in the seventh year, and he will owe you nothing for his freedom.
3If he arrives alone, he is to leave alone; if he arrives with a wife, his wife is to leave with him.3If he was single when he became your slave, he shall leave single. But if he was married before he became a slave, then his wife must be freed with him.
4If his master gives him a wife and she bears him sons or daughters, the wife and her children belong to her master, and the man must leave alone.4“If his master gave him a wife while he was a slave and they had sons or daughters, then only the man will be free in the seventh year, but his wife and children will still belong to his master.
5"But if the slave declares, 'I love my master, my wife, and my children; I do not want to leave as a free man,'5But the slave may declare, ‘I love my master, my wife, and my children. I don’t want to go free.’
6his master is to bring him to the judges and then bring him to the door or doorpost. His master will pierce his ear with an awl, and he will serve his master for life.6If he does this, his master must present him before God. Then his master must take him to the door or doorpost and publicly pierce his ear with an awl. After that, the slave will serve his master for life.
7"When a man sells his daughter as a concubine, she is not to leave as the male slaves do.7“When a man sells his daughter as a slave, she will not be freed at the end of six years as the men are.
8If she is displeasing to her master, who chose her for himself, then he must let her be redeemed. He has no right to sell her to foreigners because he has acted treacherously toward her.8If she does not satisfy her owner, he must allow her to be bought back again. But he is not allowed to sell her to foreigners, since he is the one who broke the contract with her.
9Or if he chooses her for his son, he must deal with her according to the customary treatment of daughters.9But if the slave’s owner arranges for her to marry his son, he may no longer treat her as a slave but as a daughter.
10If he takes an additional wife, he must not reduce the food, clothing, or marital rights of the first wife.10“If a man who has married a slave wife takes another wife for himself, he must not neglect the rights of the first wife to food, clothing, and sexual intimacy.
11And if he does not do these three things for her, she may leave free of charge, without any payment.11If he fails in any of these three obligations, she may leave as a free woman without making any payment. Cases of Personal Injury
12"Whoever strikes a person so that he dies must be put to death.12“Anyone who assaults and kills another person must be put to death.
13But if he did not intend any harm, and yet God allowed it to happen, I will appoint a place for you where he may flee.13But if it was simply an accident permitted by God, I will appoint a place of refuge where the slayer can run for safety.
14If a person schemes and willfully acts against his neighbor to murder him, you must take him from my altar to be put to death.14However, if someone deliberately kills another person, then the slayer must be dragged even from my altar and be put to death.
15"Whoever strikes his father or his mother must be put to death.15“Anyone who strikes father or mother must be put to death.
16"Whoever kidnaps a person must be put to death, whether he sells him or the person is found in his possession.16“Kidnappers must be put to death, whether they are caught in possession of their victims or have already sold them as slaves.
17"Whoever curses his father or his mother must be put to death.17“Anyone who dishonors father or mother must be put to death.
18"When men quarrel and one strikes the other with a stone or his fist, and the injured man does not die but is confined to bed,18“Now suppose two men quarrel, and one hits the other with a stone or fist, and the injured person does not die but is confined to bed.
19if he can later get up and walk around outside leaning on his staff, then the one who struck him will be exempt from punishment. Nevertheless, he must pay for his lost work time and provide for his complete recovery.19If he is later able to walk outside again, even with a crutch, the assailant will not be punished but must compensate his victim for lost wages and provide for his full recovery.
20"When a man strikes his male or female slave with a rod, and the slave dies under his abuse, the owner must be punished.20“If a man beats his male or female slave with a club and the slave dies as a result, the owner must be punished.
21However, if the slave can stand up after a day or two, the owner should not be punished because he is his owner's property.21But if the slave recovers within a day or two, then the owner shall not be punished, since the slave is his property.
22"When men get in a fight and hit a pregnant woman so that her children are born prematurely but there is no injury, the one who hit her must be fined as the woman's husband demands from him, and he must pay according to judicial assessment.22“Now suppose two men are fighting, and in the process they accidentally strike a pregnant woman so she gives birth prematurely. If no further injury results, the man who struck the woman must pay the amount of compensation the woman’s husband demands and the judges approve.
23If there is an injury, then you must give life for life,23But if there is further injury, the punishment must match the injury: a life for a life,
24eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot,24an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, a hand for a hand, a foot for a foot,
25burn for burn, bruise for bruise, wound for wound.25a burn for a burn, a wound for a wound, a bruise for a bruise.
26"When a man strikes the eye of his male or female slave and destroys it, he must let the slave go free in compensation for his eye.26“If a man hits his male or female slave in the eye and the eye is blinded, he must let the slave go free to compensate for the eye.
27If he knocks out the tooth of his male or female slave, he must let the slave go free in compensation for his tooth.27And if a man knocks out the tooth of his male or female slave, he must let the slave go free to compensate for the tooth.
28"When an ox gores a man or a woman to death, the ox must be stoned, and its meat may not be eaten, but the ox's owner is innocent.28“If an ox gores a man or woman to death, the ox must be stoned, and its flesh may not be eaten. In such a case, however, the owner will not be held liable.
29However, if the ox was in the habit of goring, and its owner has been warned yet does not restrain it, and it kills a man or a woman, the ox must be stoned, and its owner must also be put to death.29But suppose the ox had a reputation for goring, and the owner had been informed but failed to keep it under control. If the ox then kills someone, it must be stoned, and the owner must also be put to death.
30If instead a ransom is demanded of him, he can pay a redemption price for his life in the full amount demanded from him.30However, the dead person’s relatives may accept payment to compensate for the loss of life. The owner of the ox may redeem his life by paying whatever is demanded.
31If it gores a son or a daughter, he is to be dealt with according to this same law.31“The same regulation applies if the ox gores a boy or a girl.
32If the ox gores a male or female slave, he must give thirty shekels of silver to the slave's master, and the ox must be stoned.32But if the ox gores a slave, either male or female, the animal’s owner must pay the slave’s owner thirty silver coins, and the ox must be stoned.
33"When a man uncovers a pit or digs a pit, and does not cover it, and an ox or a donkey falls into it,33“Suppose someone digs or uncovers a pit and fails to cover it, and then an ox or a donkey falls into it.
34the owner of the pit must give compensation; he must pay to its owner, but the dead animal will become his.34The owner of the pit must pay full compensation to the owner of the animal, but then he gets to keep the dead animal.
35"When a man's ox injures his neighbor's ox and it dies, they must sell the live ox and divide its proceeds; they must also divide the dead animal.35“If someone’s ox injures a neighbor’s ox and the injured ox dies, then the two owners must sell the live ox and divide the price equally between them. They must also divide the dead animal.
36If, however, it is known that the ox was in the habit of goring, yet its owner has not restrained it, he must compensate fully, ox for ox; the dead animal will become his.36But if the ox had a reputation for goring, yet its owner failed to keep it under control, he must pay full compensation—a live ox for the dead one—but he may keep the dead ox.
The Christian Standard Bible. Copyright © 2017 by Holman Bible Publishers. Used by permission.Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Exodus 20
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